Report: Allegations of payoffs, grade changing at Auburn under Chizik

April 03, 2013|Reuters

A handful of former Auburn football players have accused the school of changing grades, bribery and a laundry list of other allegations and corruption at the school while Gene Chizik was guiding the program to its national championship in 2010.

Three former Tigers, including Mike McNeil who is on trial for armed robbery, detailed the allegations to former New York Times and Sports Illustrated columnist Selena Roberts, whose report appears on her Website Roopstigo.com.

Among some of the allegations reported by Roberts are:

-- Then-defensive coordinator Will Mushcamp, now the head coach at Florida, once tried to give McNeil $400;

-- McNeil said players who hosted recruits were given far more than the $50 allowed by NCAA;

-- Grades were altered so that players who were academically ineligible could participate in the 2011 BCS championship game;

-- Darvin Adams, a wide receiver was offered thousands of dollars by the coaching staff to return for his senior season. Adams went undrafted after refusing the coaches' overtures due in part to negative reports Auburn gave NFL scouts.

A Florida spokesperson denied the payment allegation to Roberts on Muschamp's behalf. Neither Auburn nor Chizik has responded to the report, CBSSports.com reported.

Roberts reported that former Auburn defensive tackle Mike Blanc indicated that the school "found a way" for nine players who the team had been told would be ineligible for the 2011 BCS Championship Game -- including MVP Mike Dyer -- to play in the game.

Last year, the NCAA investigated the recruitment of a Memphis-area high school player, whose transcripts were forged. Auburn also came under scrutiny in 2010 for its recruitment of quarterback Cam Newton.